Washington DC - Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance recently made a bizarre argument while defending a debunked conspiracy theory he and Donald Trump insist on pushing.

On Sunday, Vance sat down for an interview with CNN anchor Dana Bash, who pressed the Ohio senator on why he continues to push the claims that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are eating peoples' pets "despite officials in your state saying there is no evidence and pleading for them to stop."

Bash asked Vance directly if he could say that the claims were "a rumor that has no basis with evidence".

The Ohio senator quickly grew defensive, arguing that he will do whatever it takes to push the narrative he wants.

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"The American media totally ignored this stuff until Donald Trump and I started talking about cat memes," Vance stated.

"If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that's what I'm going to do," he added.

Bash, who was clearly left dumbfounded by his remarks, asked, "So the eating dogs and cats thing is not accurate?"

Vance attempted to clarify that he meant he was "creating the American media focus on" the "suffering" created by Vice President Kamala Harris' "open border" policies.

The rumors began with a viral Facebook post in which a Springfield resident claimed someone's missing cat was found hanging from a Haitian neighbor's tree as they were preparing to eat it.

The claims eventually reached Vance and Trump, who began sharing them in an effort to support their aggressive anti-migrant rhetoric.

Trump even randomly brought up the story during his recent debate with Harris, as he insisted migrants were "eating the dogs" in Springfield.

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City officials have dismissed the claims as untrue, and the woman who created the post recently expressed regret about sharing it – but the politicians have insisted on pushing them anyway.

While in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday, Trump was asked about the recent bomb threats that forced schools and government buildings in Springfield to be shut down.

The presidential candidate claimed he didn't know anything about the threats but claimed, "I do know that it's been taken over by illegal migrants," although the Haitian immigrants in Springfield are there legally.

In a reaction to Vance's comments on CNN, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg described them as a "confession" that he and Trump are lying.

"All this to change the subject away from abortion rights, manufacturing jobs, taxation of the rich, and the other things clearly at stake in this election," Buttigieg added.